Raybec’s Approach
Hot on the heels of really successful SalesLink implementations, we’re doing a lot of consultancy these days with our clients. Some of it is directly tied to SalesLink. All of it has to do with helping to define and execute relationship strategies. It was in this context that we had the chance to reflect a bit on our approach and I’m happy with the outcome – so I thought I’d share it here. We are collaborative partners who focus on strategy AND execution and always respect budgets.
Colaborative Partners. We are strong thought partners who work collaboratively with our clients. We help develop and test ideas to accomplish your goals. We marry what you know with our experience and best practices to define a plan of action. We will regularly be asking you for your feedback and if we are meeting your expectations. The result is a great working relationship highlighted by mutual trust and respect.
How this plays out: Honestly — we have the best clients ever. In just about every meeting I’m in we have a creative, funny, and energizing time. I continue to learn from our clients all the time and it’s great to have that experience.
Strategy and Execution. Great strategy is only great to the extent that it is effectively executed. We have a strong bias for action. We recognize that there is no perfect strategy and that we need to consistently revise and tweak initial direction with continuous learning.
How this plays out: For years I’ve riled against the big studies and binders that collect dust on shelves. To the extent that you need a report or an analysis, it should be the kind of thing that gets dog-eared and used regularly as you execute against it. And another thing — you have to be able to execute. I still flip back to Bossidy and Charan’s Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done from time to time. I think it’s a classic.
Respect Budgets. There will never be any budget surprises. We work against a specific budget, which is only changed with your knowledge and approval.
How this plays out: Today I gave a client a number of options to host files that she wanted to serve up using SalesLink. There was varying complexity to each option and varying degrees of work for our team. She asked me for the cost of the two different options and my response was that I couldn’t bring myself to invoice her for the work. Yes – one option was more work and we’d have to keep track of more moving parts. But our interest is in long term relationships. In my mind you can’t charge for every 6-minute interval, every photocopy made, every courier used. Lawyers have a notoriously bad reputation for this — I don’t know if it’s true or not. If you want to be in long term relationship, agree on a price for your work and then work to exceed expectations. As the work changes (and it often does) talk about it with your client. It’s taken me a while to be able to have easy conversations about money with our clients but, what’s nice, is that none of them want us to work for free. That realization made money conversations easy.
